Loose-leaf binder



April 15, 1930. E. 1 KRAG LOOSE LEAF BINDER v Filed March 5l. 1928 5 Sheets-Sheet l M un f/v VEA/TOR."

-Er//f L. ,Kr-og April 15, 1930. E. KRAG 1,754,471

LOOSE LEAF BINDER Filed March 31, 192B 5 sheets-sheet. 2

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LOOSE LEAF BINDER Filed March 51, 1928 '5 Sheets-Sheet 5 Patented Apr. 15, 1930 ERIK L. KRAG, F CHICAGO, ILLINOIS LOOSE-LEAF BINDER Application filed March 31, 1928. Serial N0. 266,154.

This invention relates to loose-leaf binders and it has for its object providing improved means for shifting the loose leaves in the binder from one position to another with 6 reference to the other lea-ves in the binder, one of the particular objects being to provlde means for shifting the leaves, or narrow sheets, which may be in the binder, a very material distance with reference to other leaves or the binder itself. Another object is to provide means for withdrawing the loose leaves intact entirely from the binder.

Another object of the invention isto provide improved means for locking and unlocking the binder in its closed position, and for preventing shifting-of the leaves when the binder is locked. Othe objects of the invention will be apparent from a'consideration of the accompanying drawings and the following description thereof.

Of the drawings, Fig. 1 is a plan view of the binder when locked in its closed position; Fig. 2 is an enlarged transverse sectional view along the line 2-2 of Fig. l; Fig. 3 is a fragmental sectional view along the line 3--3 of Fig. 2; Fig. 4 is a transverse sectional view similar to Fig. 2, with the binder in its open or shiftable position; Fig. 5 is an end view of the binder; Fig. V6 is a fragmental plan view of the locking mechanism of the binder; Fig. 7 is a fractional plan view of a modified form of the binder; Fig. 8 is a sectional view along the line 8-8 of Fig. 7; Fig. 9 is a sectional view along the line 9-9 of Fig. 7; Fig. 10 is an end view of the binder of Fig. 7; Figs. 11 vand 12 are views corresponding to Figs. 8 and 9 but showing further modifications; Figs. 13, 14 and 15 similarly illustrate a further modification.

The loose leat` binder which I have illustrated to describe my invention is an ordinary type of binder which has a frame consisting of two sections 1.0 and 11 which are pivoted or hinged together by hinges 12. Mounted in the sections are strips 13 and 14 carrying prongs 15 and 16, each of the strips having as many prongs as may be desired for properly holding the paper. When the one strip pass through holes 17 in the other binder is closed the ends of the prongs of strip. As is well understood. the sheets of paper 19 which are to be held in the binder have holes 18 in their inner edges through which the respective prongs 15 and 16 pass. When the binder is to be used for certain purposes, for instance, for what are ordinarily called visible records, it is desirable to shift the sheets upwardly and downwardly in the binder, the length of the sheets, usually, being much less than the length of the binder. In such a case, holes 20 are `formed in the paper between the prongs, and, by opening the binder, the sheets may be removed and shifted to other prongs, so as to be positioned where desired.

It is diiiicult, however, to shift the sheets from one set of prongs to another when the sheets are entirely removed. Means have.

therefore, been developed to shift one set of prongs with reference to the other, so that, when thebinder is open sufficiently, one set of prongs may be entirely withdrawn from the sheets of vpaper that are to be shifted; the other prongs then may be shifted until they are opposite another set of holes in the sheets. Then, by closing thebinder, the prongs Iwill enter the new set of holes in the sheets and the sheets then can be passed on to the new set, and this set may then be shifted to its normal position.

My invention, in part, consists in improved means for shifting one set of prongs with reference to the other. One method of making the shift is to shift the entire half of the binder with reference to the other half, but my method consists in shifting merelythe strip to which the prongs are attached without relatively shifting the two halves of the binder back. To accomplish this, I slidably mount the plates to which the prongs are attached, so that, when the binder is open, somewhatV more than as indicated in Fig. 4, one of the plates with its prongs can be shifted longitudinally with reference to the rest of the binder,and this will shift also all of the sheets that are mounted on the prongs. For instance. when it is desired to shift the sheets from prongs 16 to prongs 15, the strip 14` is shifted until the desired holes in the sheets are opposite the prongs l5; the binder is then closed, passing the prongs 15 through the desired holes. The sheet to be shifted is then turned over on the prongs 15 and released from prongs 16 and the prongs 16 are shifted back to normal position.

The strip 14 may be slidably mounted in the frame in any suitable manner. I prefer to have the frame member 21 extend back of the strip 14 and have a flange 22 extending down in front of the strip; and a flange 23 positioned in front of the lower edge of the strip 14, together with the fiange 22, provides means for holding the strip 14 slidably in the proper position. A handle 24 mounted on the end ofthe strip 14 provides means for shifting it in either direction when desired.

It is desirable to limit the movement of the strip 14 to the distance between two holes in the sheets, so that the outer ends of the prongs will properly register with the next holes in the sheets when the shift is made. Any suitable means may be provided for limiting the movement of the strip. I prefer to have a member 25 fixed to the strip 14 by means of pins 26 passing through a slot 27 in the strip 21. The pins, by striking against the respective ends of the slot limit the movement of the strip 14.

I have also found it desirable to have means for holding the strip 14 fairly firmly either in its normal position or in its shifted posi tion. For this purpose, I provide on the strip 25 a finger 30 which projects from the member 25 under the frame piece 11 and coacts with an arm 32 pivoted at 33 to the plate 11. A spring 34 resiliently holds the arm 32 against the end of the finger 30, and a boss 35 prevents movement of the strip 14 in either direction until sufficient force is used to overcome the resistance of the spring. As a consequence, the strip 14 will remain in position, except when it is desired to make the shift.

Further provision is made to prevent the shifting of the prongs until the binder is open. I provide for this by having a finger 36 fixed to the arm 32 and arranged to pass through an opening 37 in the flange member 38. The length of this finger is such that the arm 32 is held from operation when the binder is closed or nearly closed. But, when the binder is opened sufficiently to release the ends of the prongs from the paper lying on the opposite sides of the binder, the finger 36 will allow the arm 32 to be operated in order to shift the strip 14.

I have found it desirable to provide for the shifting, in a similar manner, of both sets of prongs. so that provision is made for shifting strip 13 in a manner similar to the shifting of the strip 14, the various members for producing this result being substantially duplicated on the two sides of the binder. The purpose of shifting both sets of prongs is in order to make a double shift of the sheets of paper when desired, so that the distance the sheet is shifted with reference to the other sheets is twice as great as when one set of prongs only is shiftable.

I provide improved means for locking the binder sections together. These means comprise a latch 45 which is pivoted to the frame l() and extends through the frame member 38, so as to pass through the slot 44 in the corresponding member 46, and thus to lock the two members together when the binder is closed. To operate the lock, I provide a channel member or bar 47 having slots 50 therein. The member 47 is slidably mounted beneath the frame 11 and. as it is shifted inwardly it unlocks the lock 45 from the frame member 46. A spring 51 resiliently holds the member 47 in the locked position. lVhen it is desired to release the sections of the binder, the member 47 is forced inwardly, turning the lock 45, and the members are thus released. As many locks 45 as may be desired may be inserted in the binder, each operated by the channel member 47.

Figs. 7 to 1 0 illustrate a modified form of the binder shifting mechanism which comprises the shifting strip 14 to which is attached, as herein described, the prongs 16, and which is slidably mounted and may be operated by the handle 24. But, coacting with this strip, is a slidably mounted strip 60 having a handle 61. I provide means whereby, when one of these strips is forced inwardly, the other strip will be forced outwardly. As a consequence, it is necessary only to force one or the other of the strips inwardly whenever it is desired to shift the prongs 16 in either direct-ion. I havel found it more convenient, in sonie instances, to provide this double arrangement.

The two strips 14 and 60 are operatively connected for the purpose described in any suitable manner, I prefer to provide a lever 62 pivoted at the point 63 to the frame piece 21. In the ends of the lever are slots 64 and 65 which coact with the respective pins 66 and 67 fixed respectively to the Strips 60 and 14. These pins pass from the strips through slots 68 in the frame piece 69, and project through the respective slots 64 and 65I of the lever 62 which is pivoted to but outside of the frame piece 69. It will thus be seen that, when the handle 61 is pushed inwardly, the strip 14 will be forced outwardly.

Means may be provided for limiting the movement of the strips; in this instance, the slots 68 limit the movement of the pins 66 and 67 and, thus, limit the movement of the prongs 16.

For preventing inadvertent movement of the strips and also for preventing movement of the strips when the binder is locked, I provide mechanism somewhat similar to the mechanism which is provided with the modification shown in Figs. 1 to 6. I prefer, however, with this double shifting means, to provide for these purposes the finger 70 ,which is fixed to the strip 60. Coacting with this finger is a slidably mount-ed pin 71 resiliently held against the finger by means of the spring 72. By using sufHcient force, the strip 14 can be shifted to its new position, but the pin 71 will prevent any ordinary inadvertent shifting of the strip.

To prevent the strip from being shifted, when the binder is closed, the pin 71 projects inwardly and through the wall 73 in a manner similar to that of the linger 36 of Figs. 1-6; so that, when the binder is closed, the pins 71 cannot yield suiliciently to allow the shifting of the member 7 0 and, thus, of the strip 14. I prefer to duplicate this entire shifting and limiting and restraining mechanism on the two sides of the binder. This provides for double shifting of the paper and also is desirable for other reasons.

The locking mechanism of this modification may be substantially the same as hereinabove described, comprising the shifting channel bar 47 and the locks 45.

It is sometimes desirable to shift certain papers a very material distancewith reference to the others. For this purpose, I provide the modified mechanism illustrated in Figs. 11 and 12. This comprises slidably mounted strips 79 and 80, corresponding to strips 13 and 14, each having on its lower edge a plurality of notches 8l with which coact a pin 82 projecting through a slot 83 in the frame. This pin is resiliently held against the strip 80 by means of springs 84, but will yield when sufficient force is applied to the strip. As many notches 81 as may be desired may be formed in the edge of the strip and, thus, the strip, as well as the prongs and paper, may be shifted with reference to the rest of the paper as far as may be desired. It will be understood that the distance between the notches corresponds to the distance between the two sets of prongs, so that the prongs may be brought into registry with the proper openings in the sheets of paper to be shifted. To prevent shifting of the strip 80 when the binder is closed, I provide a pin 85 which is slidably mounted in the frame with its outer end 86 coacting with the lower end of the pins 82. The inner end of the pin 85 passes through a slot 87 in the frame and coacts with the member 88 of the frame, when the binder is closed, so as to prevent shifting of the pin 82 and the strip 80.

It will be understood that in this modification the length of the strip must be in accordance with the distance that it is to be shifted, unless provision is made for shifting it beyond the end of the binder. As the shifting for the purpose of changing the sheets is merely temporary, there is,no material disadvantage in shifting the strip 80 a material distance beyond the end of the binder. But, with this means and the parts properly coacting, .it will be seen that the sheets may be shifted with reference to the other sheets very material distances as readily as they can be shifted from one prong to the next by the ordinary method.

The strips 80 and 79 are both slidably mounted and they can be shifted in either direction so far as may be desired, as the distance they may be shifted is not necessarily limited to the coacting notch positions. Also, either or both of the strips, together with the prongs and sheets carried thereby, can be shifted entirely out of the binder if desired.

I find that, when the prongs are shifted,

by shifting the strips to which they are at-A tached, the sheets carried by the prongs tend to lag behind, and sometimes the prongs to which the sheets are to be transferred fail to register centrally with the holes in the sheets, so that some difficulty is experienced in passing the prongs into the holes. To avoid this, I prefer to fix a fly leaf 90, Figs. 13 to 15, to the strip 91 which is to be shifted, in order to carry it with the strip 91 and the sheets 93 which are/carried by the prongs. By having this fly leaf fixed to the shiftable strip 91, the sheets which are being shifted are carried along on the fly leaf and are not displaced at all with reference to the prongs. As a consequence, the prongs fixed to the opposite strip 94 register definitely with the central portion of the holes 95 of the shifted sheets and, hence, pass freely into the holes.

In order to prevent the flange 96 from rubbing on the fly leaf as it is shifted, I prefer to bend the central portion of the strip 91 outwardly, as indicated, so that the fly leaf is carried clear of the flange 96. It will be understood that, if desired, the strip 94 also carries a ily leaf 97, and, in general, the arrangement is duplicated on this side.

Also, I prefer to provide a back 100 for the binder which comprises a leather or yielding outer and inner portions 101 and, between these two portions, a metallic sheet 102- for stift'ening purposes. This back may be rectangular at the corner 103, as indicated, or the corner may be rounded, as may be desired. The upper portion 104 of the metallic sheet projects outwardly and to this is hinged the cover 105 of the entire book, the cover also having a stilfening metallic sheet 106 projecting part wayinwardly from the hingl` 107.

I 11nd it desirable to have binders of this nature very rmly locked together and, partly for this reason, I also show a modified form of locking means in Figs. 13 to 15, which comprises a plurality of latches 110 which are integral with or fixed to a slidably mounted bar 111. These' latches are adapted to pass through slots 112 in the frame pieces 113.

, it is to be understood 'when said frame parts To conveniently control the latches, a strip 114 is slidably mounted in the frame, having a handle 115 projecting therefrom; and a lever 116, pivoted to the frame piece 117, coacts with the two slidable strips by means of pins 118 fixed to the strips and playing in slots 119 in the ends of the lever. The sldable strips are guided in any suitable manner, such as by means of transverse guide members 120. It will thus be seen that, whenever it is desired to unlock the frame, it is necessary only to push the handle 115 inwardly and the latch strip 111 will be pushed outwardly so as to release the latches. A spring 121 resiliently holds the latches in the locked position but yields when the frame is beingclosed so as to allow the latches to pass through the slots 112.

Although I have described with considerable detail various features of my invention and the various modifications thereof, yet, that changes therein may be made by those skilled in the art without departing from the spirit of my invention as disclosed by the following claims.

I claim as my invention:

1. A lose leaf binder comprising a frame having two hinged parts, a slidably mounted strip in one of said parts, a plurality of prongs fixed to said strip, a finger fixed tosaid strip and projecting into said frame part, a member movably mounted in said frame and adapted to coact with said linger, resilient means for holding said member against said finger, and a shoulder on said member adapted to prevent movement of said linger vuntil the force of the spring has been overcome.

2. A loose leaf binder as claimed in claim 1, said member having a projection thereon extending toward the other of said frame part-s and coacting therewith when said frame parts are closed, thereby preventing movement of said arm. A

3. A loose leaf binder comprising two frame arts hinged together, a slidably mounted) strip in one of said parts, a plurality of paper-holding prongs fixed to said strip, means to prevent sliding of said strip are in their closed positions, means for locking said frame parts in their closed positions, said locking means comprising a latch pivoted to one of said parts and a bar slidably mounted in said last-mentioned frame part and coacting with said latch, and resilient means tending to prevent movement of said bar and to restore it to its initial ositio'n when moved, said latch lockin said ast-mentioned frame-part to the other rame part when said frame parts are closed.

4. A loose leaf binder comprising a frame having two parts hinged together, a. strip slidably mounted in said frame, a plurality of paper-holding prongs fixed to said strip, means for sliding said strip, a second slidably mounted strip in said frame part, and a lever pivoted between said strips with its arms extending opposite said strips, the arms being pivotally associated with the respective strips whereby movement of one strip in one direction will move the other strip in the other direction.

5. A loose leaf binder comprising a frame having two parts hingedtogether, a strip slidably mounted in said frame, a plurality of paper-holding prongs xed to said strip, means for slidin said strip, a second slidably mounted strip in said frame part, a lever pivoted between said strips with its arms extending opposite said strips, the arms being pivotally associated with the respective strips whereby movement of one strip in one direction will move the other strip in the other direction, and vmeans to prevent movement of said second strip when said frame parts are in their closed positions.

In testimony whereof, I hereunto set my ERIK L. KRAG.

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